Whumptober 2019- Secret Injury
by Frankie McStein
Summary: If Magnum knows she needs medical attention he'll do something stupid. She just needs to keep it to herself for a while. Just a little while.


The fist that flew into her face sent her staggering, but it was the butt of the rifle that slammed into the small of her back that sent her sprawling to the floor. Pain exploded in her side as a foot was driven into her, knocking what was left of her breath out of her lungs. That same foot came stamping down on her back while another dug deep into her other side and kept pushing until her body rolled. The pain was white-hot and agonising and robbed her of the ability to think, to speak, to breathe.

A few more blows came raining down on her while, somewhere, someone was laughing.

"You really thought you could take us all on and win? Stupid woman." The other men moved away as the voice got closer. A figure, bathed in shadows, knelt by her. Fingers in her hair pulled her head up and lips pressed close to her ear.

"Guest house. Lead the way."

She had no idea how she managed to get to her feet, but she suspected stubbornness had a heck of a lot to do with it. Keeping her feet under her was another matter; even sheer willpower wasn't enough to keep her upright. As she staggered up the handful of steps, she felt her legs crumple under her and dropped, landing hard enough to send the world reeling around her.

A hand wrapped around her arm and pulled. Her choices were simple- stand and walk, or be dragged. She sucked in as deep a breath as she could manage to get past the pain in her chest, locked her knees against the dizziness, and put one foot forward. She would not, under any circumstances, lean against the support the hand was offering. She would let them drag her first.

And that might well happen sooner than she would like. Every movement was sending shocks of pain running up from her back, spreading out like ripples until she felt sure that one more shift would drive her mad, pain stealing across her nerves and sinking its claws deep into her sanity. And still she kept moving. They had beaten her in a fight, sure, but she would not let them see that they had beaten her down. No way that was happening. She would crawl before she would stop. Let them laugh, but she was moving. Sod them.

…

Magnum groaned goodnaturedly at the knock on his door. He'd been half-expecting Higgins to show up after the day they'd had, her getting drugged and him getting kidnapped- he still wasn't entirely sure how they'd managed to close their case- but he'd been hoping she would stop by earlier, before he'd started having longing thoughts about his bed.

"Coming," he called out, as another knock sounded. "You know, you're the only person who comes by here who actually knocks. You don't have…" He swung open the door to find himself staring down the barrel of a gun.

"Maybe you should consider getting politer friends," came a cold voice, and the gun swung slightly, gesturing him back to the couch he had just stood from. Two men followed the man with the gun, each with guns of their own, then a fourth man entered, practically dragging Higgins.

Magnum took a step forward at the sight of her, blood trickling freely down the side of her face. The gun waved again and he froze, anger on his face.

Higgins was still walking, although it was obvious it was costing her dearly to do so, and Magnum watched as she made her way over to the couch, her 'escort' sticking with her every step of the way. When she was a few steps away, Magnum reached out, but, before he could catch her free arm, the man holding her gave her a shove that sent her flying. Magnum stepped to the side and caught her, trying to ignore the way she tried to smother her cry of pain.

He turned them around and lowered her to the couch, holding all of her weight when her knees buckled. It wasn't hard to ignore the men around them as he sat next to her and pulled her close, letting her rest against him rather than slumping against the cushions. He was worried about the tremors he could feel running through her and was waiting for an opportunity to ask her what, besides the obvious, was wrong.

"Now then, Mr. Magnum, you and I need to have a chat." The man who had met Magnum at the door settled himself in a chair, gun still pointed at Magnum's head. "I know you know where Detective Katsumoto has gone. Give me the name of his hotel, and we'll leave you alone."

Higgins snorted in disbelief, and the man glared at her before smirking.

"How would you feel about going toe-to-toe with my men again, Ms. Higgins?" He clearly thought it was a threat, but Magnum felt Higgins laugh through the arm he had wrapped around her.

"You think a few bruises are going to stop me kicking your arses?" she asked, in an almost sweet tone of voice, and Magnum was intimately familiar with the look he just knew she was sporting.

He felt a smug grin tugging at his mouth as he saw anger flash on the man's face. "Can I watch while you do?" Magnum kept his voice light, matching her tone. "You know I love watching you fight, snookems."

Higgins pulled away from him to give him a look of amusement. "Of course you can, pooky. I'll even do that thing you like so much with the high kick."

"Oh! And what about the thing where we both go after the one guy."

"And he ends up out cold with us standing over him?"

"Maybe I can say the sarcastic line this time?"

"It's only fair. I did say it last time "

The gunmen were looking between them, confused by the turn the conversation had taken. The one sitting in front of the pair, the one who appeared to be in charge, suddenly pushed his gun forward, pressing it hard into Higgins' side.

"I'm real glad you're both having fun," he spat, waving a hand at the men ranged behind him. Two of them stepped forward, zip ties in hand, while the other covered Magnum with his weapon. Magnum stood slowly, being careful not to move his hands, and was grabbed and turned, his arms pulled behind his back, and the thin plastic yanked tightly around his wrists.

Then a hand on his shoulder pulled him back and shoved him toward his bedroom. He turned his head to see Higgins getting to her feet, doubtless following another gun-based command. But, instead of being turned and restrained, she was pulled forward until she was pressed up against the leader, who ran his hand over her cheek.

Magnum stopped walking and the men behind him stopped walking too, apparently happy for him to watch while their boss grabbed Higgins' hair to tip her head back and pressed his lips close to her ear. Magnum couldn't hear what was whispered to her, but he heard her response, loud and clear.

"You wouldn't know what to do with me if I did."

It was awesome. It was worth the cry of pain she gave as the man growled and threw her to the floor. It was worth the choking noise that escaped her as he kicked her in the stomach. It was worth the way the man tied her ankles together as well as her wrists. It was worth being dragged down the hall and into the bedroom.

Seeing the man in charge lose his temper, and in front of his men, was worth a lot. Some mild discomfort was a small price to pay. At least, that's what Higgins told herself as she was struggling to breathe through the pain of being dropped to the floor.

She was starting to think that one of the blows she'd taken had done some serious damage. Even with the restraints pinning her hands tightly together, she could feel a trembling in her fingers. There was something, some sort of pressure, dragging at her breath. The pain in her lower stomach was agonising. Even taking too deep a breath made it flare up and flash along her nerves.

As much as she wanted to curl into a ball and never move again, she knew she couldn't let on about her suspicions. If Magnum knew she needed medical attention, he would probably do something stupid to try to ensure she get it. While she did appreciate the concern he had for her wellbeing, she had no intention of being the reason why he got himself killed.

So, as Magnum scooted along the floor to sit beside her, she plastered a look of boredom over her face.

"Not exactly how I'd hoped to spend this evening," she grumbled, hoping the pain she was feeling wasn't obvious in her voice. Magnum chuckled, and she thought she'd pulled it off.

"It's more interesting than my plans," he offered, and Higgins forced herself to give a small smile.

She had suddenly noticed she was feeling a little cold and didn't like what she was thinking about the possible reasons for it. Her mind was screaming at her that this was exactly how she felt in Paris, when she had been suffering from internal bleeding. She hadn't been able to get medical attention for a while then either

_'And you were fine," _she told herself firmly. _'You'll be fine this time too. Probably isn't even internal bleeding. It's just a bruise coupled with melodrama.'_

Magnum was saying something, and Higgins had to force herself to pay attention.

"... no way we can tell them where Katsumoto is staying with the witness."

"Naturally not."

And then the lights went out.

They stayed silent for a few moments, blinking in the sudden darkness. Higgins took advantage to let the mask drop, to screw up her face and clench her jaw against the scream of pain that was bubbling up in her throat.

"Why cut the power now? When they're already inside?"

She forced a look of contemplation just as Magnum, his profile picked out in the moonlight, looked down at her.

"Maybe they imagine we'll be scared of the dark?"

There was a loud crash as someone tripped over something. Despite the pain she was in, Higgins rolled her eyes.

"Or maybe they're just idiots." She tried to ignore the way a surge of pain made her voice waver on the last word. She felt Magnum tense beside her and cursed to herself.

The door flew open before she could say anything out loud.

"Are you ready to talk?" The man glared at them, and Magnum opened his mouth to say something, but Higgins, worried about what he was about to say, beat him to it.

"I love talking." She put on as vapid a voice as she could. "What would you like to talk about? The weather? Politics? Current fashion trends coming out of Milan? Oh, I understand they're doing the most fascinating things with satin this year that you just…" The kick to her chest forced her to stop talking.

Magnum tried to climb to his feet, but the man swung his rifle, catching Magnum high on the right side of his head and sending him crashing to the floor.

"I can do this all night," the man snarled.

"I assure you, Mr. Pillock, so can we." Higgins' voice was cold, and she met the man's glare with a level look of her own.

"You really are an idiot," he snapped after several seconds. "Thinking you can guess my name?" He laughed before turning and fairly stamping out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Who's Mr. Pillock?" Magnum sounded a little dazed but his voice was clear, and Higgins allowed herself a sigh of relief.

"It's an insult, Magnum. A pillock is an idiot." She felt her lips curve up slightly at his huff of laughter.

"What about his men?"

"Muppets," she answered without hesitation. "Another British term for an idiot. Mr. Pillock and The Merry Muppets." She nearly laughed at Magnum's response, surprised laughter spilling from him. But the pain in her stomach stopped her, and Magnum stopped soon after.

"Are you okay?" He sounded worried, and Higgins nearly sighed.

She really didn't want him doing something stupid, like pretending to work with Mr. Pillock, because of her.

"A bit winded." It wasn't exactly a lie; breathing was hard. It just wasn't the whole truth. "I could do without kicked again." There, that would do. She hadn't said anything that wasn't true. Technically. She was glad the lights were off so he couldn't see the lie- and yes, a lie of omission is still a lie, she knew- written on her face.

Oh!

"Magnum! They cut the power!" Her excitement had her rolling slightly so she could face him. "The security systems will have switched to their backup power supplies and, as per your suggestion, initiated a lockdown." She really hoped she was saying everything properly; the words seemed to be slipping away from her a little. She was grateful when Magnum chimed in.

"Right. Even when the main power comes back, the alarms have to be manually reset." He gave her a look. "I didn't realise that had been implemented."

She just shrugged, even though he probably couldn't see the small movement in the dark. "So, right now, all the sensors are active. Including…" she trailed off as he finished her sentence.

"Including the one on this window."

"All we need is to open it or even just hit the frame hard enough, and it'll trigger the alarm." She took a breath, the words sliding together a little. "I'll never be able to stand up." She gave a weak kick, as if to blame the ties on her ankles. The reality was she really wasn't sure she could have stood up anyway; her stomach felt swollen and was throbbing in time with her too-rapid heartbeat and her breathing was too shallow, making her head spin. She didn't even know the word to describe the pain.

Magnum didn't waste time answering, just started trying to rock himself over so he could get his feet under him. He rolled to his stomach and dragged his knees up, wriggling slightly as he struggled to maintain his balance with his hands behind his back.

He didn't waste time sighing in relief as he stood, although he wanted to. Just hurried to the widow, spun, and arched himself forwards a little so his fingers could find the latch. He gave a quick, if somewhat painful, twist of his hands and was rewarded with the small click of the latch opening. Then he gave a sigh, thinking happily of the alarm that would be popping up at HPD, and of the police cars that would be dispatched within two minutes.

He made his way back across the room, dropping carefully down next to Higgins.

"Now we just need to wait." He was expecting some sort of answer. Maybe a statement of relief. Perhaps a scathing retort about stating the obvious. She stayed silent, and he was suddenly aware of the sound of her breathing. As he listened, she suddenly sucked in a quick breath, and then the noise stopped.

"Higgy?" He felt a vague sense of panic welling up and quickly squashed it. "What is it?" Keeping his voice level he peered at her through the darkness and saw a grimace on her face, sweat on her skin. Saw her shake her head, eyes squeezed tightly shut, as she folded her lips over her teeth and bit down hard, trying to hold in the moan he could hear deep in her throat.

"It's okay," he whispered, guessing she was trying to avoid alerting their captors to her obvious injuries and worried about what those injuries might be. "The police'll be on their way by now. You're doing great, girl. Just a little while longer."

He pulled away from her slightly as the door opened again, Mr. Pillock walking in. He was carrying a knife, and Magnum squared his shoulders. He had no idea how he was going to defend Higgins, sitting on the floor with his wrists tied, but he did know she was in no fit state to defend herself and that he wasn't going to let her get hurt anymore than she already had been.

Mr. Pillock grabbed Higgins' ankles and yanked her across the floor, dragging a scream out of her, and Magnum saw red. He surged up, shifting his feet to accommodate his weight. Mr Pillock turned, dropping Higgins' ankles and raising his knife. But, in his mind, Magnum was seeing flashes from the security footage of Higgins' fight with Inna and he copied her move, driving his shoulder into Mr. Pillock and slamming the other man up against the wall.

The knife clattered to the floor. Magnum heaved himself forward again, hearing a pained gasp as all his weight landed on hard on Mr. Pillock's chest. Magnum moved back, Mr. Pillock slumped forward, and Magnum kicked up, catching Mr. Pillock's lowered face. He dropped to the floor, out cold, and Magnum quickly dropped too, scrambling for the knife.

He had just managed to twist the blade against the zip ties when he heard a shout.

"Cops!"

There was a confused rush of noise as the three men unanimously decided to try to run for it. Shouting from outside and a spate of gunfire told Magnum how that worked out for them. Not that he was paying much attention. He had cut the ties on Higgins' ankles and was trying to lift her enough to free her hands without hurting her. She groaned as he pulled her upright, catching her breath with a cry.

"Put me down," she whimpered, and Magnum was horrified to hear tears in her voice. "Please put me down."

She didn't even move her arms as the zip ties around her wrists were cut, just let them fall to the floor. Magnum lowered her back down, putting her head on his legs, holding one of her hands in his.

"What is it, Juliet? What did they do to you?" He ignored the shouts that were coming from the living area, cries of "HPD!" and "Nobody move!" echoing in the night, as Higgins gasped that her stomach hurt. He lifted the hem of her shift and cursed at the sight of a purple bruise, so dark it was nearly black, covering almost half her lower stomach.

"In here! We need an ambulance!" he yelled, as footsteps got closer to the room. Beams from flashlights danced through the open door, and a figure came hurrying over.

Katsumoto dropped to his knees next to Magnum, eyes fixed on Higgins' stomach as he called for an ETA on the ambulance. The response was nearly lost as Higgins suddenly went horrifically limp and Magnum starting calling her name, begging her to hang on.

When the ambulance arrived, no more than three minutes later, Higgins was still unconscious. If the EMTs were confused to find a man bending over their patient and threatening to kidnap her dogs if she didn't wake up, they didn't waste time mentioning it.

…

The three of them sat in silence, each more than half asleep. Higgins had been rushed straight into surgery after being brought in to the hospital, and they were just waiting for her to wake up. Really speaking, they should have been in the waiting room, but her doctor was a friend of Rick's and had allowed them into Higgins' room as long as they all swore faithfully they wouldn't do anything to try to wake her up.

The second she shifted and sighed though, they all hurried to her bedside. They'd all had plenty of experience with the disorientation of waking up in a strange hospital room, and they wanted her to know she wasn't alone. She sighed again, brow furrowing slightly, and T.C. grabbed her hand, hoping she could feel the pressure.

Her eyes blinked open, slightly unfocused, but looking right at him. The small smile that curved her lips told them all she had seen and recognised him.

"Hey." Her voice was quiet, and her eyes drifted closed again even as she said the word. But it was enough.

T.C. grinned and knew Magnum and Rick had matching smiles on their faces. "How you doing, Higgy Baby?"

"Everything's… fuzzy." She frowned as she said it, clearly not happy. "I don't like it." She was whispering, half-asleep again, so T.C. just patted the hand he was holding.

"We'll talk to your doctor about it," he promised, even though he was pretty sure she wasn't listening to him.

"Mag'm?" Higgins shifted her head again, as if trying to look for Magnum even with her eyes closed.

"I'm right here, Higgy."

"O... okay?" She swallowed hard, fighting sleep to hear his answer.

"I'm fine, Juliet."

Her only response was the tiniest of smiles before she drifted back off to sleep.


End file.
